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Thursday, June 23, 2016

With the silver medal performance in the recently concluded hockey champions trophy, where the Indian men's hockey team lost in the finals to mighty Australians in the Penalty shootout, there is a renewed hope that this time the team would be coming with a medal from the Olympics. There was a time up until the late 1950's when India was the boss of the world hockey, Winning Gold in its first 6 attempts and a total of 8 golds in all, along with 1 silver and two bronze. last of which, was a gold medal that came in 1980 Moscow Olympic, since then the once great hockey team is yet to come up with a Olympic medal.

The first Gold medal winning team

The greats of the game like Dhyan Chand, Balbir Singh Sr., Leslie claudius, Ajit Kumar and many others have been instrumental in winning the gold for the country, Showcasing not just their talent but also creating a name all over the world. During the first half of the the 20th century, India was at least sure of one gold medal whenever there was an Olympics, that surety was given by its Men's hockey team.

Indian team in action

The fine dribbling of ball through a stick by the Indians not just mesmerised the crowd but made the game popular all over the world. The teams strong defence along with the goal thirsty forwards, was one of the reasons why it became closer to impossible for even scoring a single goal against the Indian team. 29 goals scored against none in 1928 Olympics, 35 scored against 2 in 1932, 38 against 1 in 1936, 25 against 1 in 1948, 2 goals against while 13 scored in 1952 and 38 against 0 in 1956 Olympics. Overall in the span of 6 Olympics games, only 6 goals were scored against India while they Pumped up a staggering 168 Goals. Surely a Legendary Hockey team.

Time to get the Glory days back

It has been 36 Years since India last won the Olympic, for a country that once produced a team of unbeatables, It is sad to see the team struggling to get even in the Top 5. And that is one of the reason why the game lost its shine over the years, while there is no lack of talent in the present side as shown by the team in last couple of years, It only needs the right mentality and Temperament to perform at the big stage.

Tuesday, June 14, 2016

"For my government, the Constitution is its real holy book. And, in that holy book, freedom of faith, speech and franchise, and equality of all citizens, regardless of background, are enshrined as fundamental rights,"Modi said during his recent 45 min long speech in the joint session of US congress. Back home, We have just witnessed a Film being almost banned by a censor board for showcasing the drug problem of certain state, when the film director denied to adhere to their 89 cuts. A city in Uttarakand is looking at a communal clash, one of his own party members claiming in a viral video that he would make this country 'Muslim Mukt'.

While it must be applauded that Modi as a PM maybe trying his very best to get all the foreign relations in the good place, it must also be noted that the religious violence, social crimes back home is still our concerns. It should also be noted that there have been cover ups to such reports, National crime records bureau counts more then 1200 communal Incidents in 2014 while government records suggests just 644 cases. There has been numerous incidents of mob lynching, celebrity bashing's by politicians over their statements (some going up to violent measures openly) or communal hate speeches, these numbers doesn't seem to decrease.Also Read:Rituals-where does it come from?

While I understand that Foreign policies and ties are necessary for a country to make its mark on the world, there must be peace within the country too. Why is it that the whole country comes together only when there is a national tragedy, festival or a cricket match, and then starts distinguishing itself back to its religion, caste, race once its all over. I think, for the betterment of country, PM must start with a clear statement of what he expects form his own party members. He should not be worrying about losing support, because he has enough support from the common people and that's what matters.Also its the people who have to do their part, there are certain sections of society who believe that anything Modi does is right and anybody questioning him is wrong. if you think that, he is the only person who is trying or has tried then that isn't true. Former PMs have also done speeches and received standing ovations, created fear in our enemy countries, signed important deals, Modi is not the only one. No doubt Narendra Modi is a very good orator and you would love to hear him speak, but their is difference in a good speaker and a good leader and a PM who could not control his own party members, will not be able to help anyone. There are plenty of cases in India that needs his attention and for that he needs to be here.Its time Mr. PM.P.S. These are my opinions, you are welcome to share yours.

Thursday, June 9, 2016

Frederick Carlton "Carl" Lewis is an American former track and field athlete, who won 10 Olympic medals, including nine gold, and 10 World Championships medals, including eight gold. His career spanned from 1979 to 1996 when he last won an Olympic title and subsequently retired.

Inspiring runs

Lewis was a dominant sprinter and long jumper setting world records in the 100 m, 4 × 100 m and 4 × 200 m relays, while his world record in the indoor long jump has stood since 1984. His 65 consecutive victories in the long jump achieved over a span of 10 years is one of the sport's longest undefeated streaks.

From 1981 until 1992, Lewis topped the 100 m ranking six times (seven if Ben Johnson's 1987 top ranking is ignored), and ranked no lower than third. His dominance in the long jump was even greater, as he topped the rankings nine times during the same period, and ranked second in the other years.

Emulating Jesse Owens
At the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, Lewis was entered into four events with realistic prospects of winning each of them and thereby matching the achievement of Jesse Owens at the 1936 Games in Berlin.

Lewis started his quest to match Owens with a convincing win in the 100 m, running 9.99 s to defeat his nearest competitor, fellow American Sam Graddy, by 0.2 s. In his next event, the long jump, Lewis won with relative ease. But his approach to winning this event stoked controversy, even as knowledgeable observers agreed his approach was the correct one. Since Lewis still had heats and finals in the 200 m and the 4 × 100 m relay to compete in, he chose to take as few jumps as necessary to win the event. He risked injury in the cool conditions of the day if he over-extended himself, and his ultimate goal to win four golds might be at risk. His first jump at 8.54 m (28 ft 0 in) was, he knew, sufficient to win the event. He took one more jump, a foul, then passed his remaining four allotted jumps. He won gold, as silver medalist Gary Honey of Australia's best jump was 8.24 m (27 ft 01⁄4 in). But the public was generally unaware of the intricacies of the sport and had been repeatedly told by the media of Lewis' quest to surpass Bob Beamon's legendary long jump record of 8.90 m (29 ft 21⁄4 in). Lewis himself had often stated it was a goal of his to surpass the mark. A television advertisement with Beamon appeared before the final, featuring the record-holder saying, "I hope you make it, kid." So, when Lewis decided not to make any more attempts to try to break the record, he was roundly booed. When asked about those boos, Lewis said, "I was shocked at first. But after I thought about it, I realized that they were booing because they wanted to see more of Carl Lewis. I guess that's flattering."

Following the footsteps of the great

His third gold medal came in the 200 m, where he won in a time of 19.80 s, a new Olympic record and the third fastest time in history. Finally, he won his fourth gold when the 4 × 100 m relay team he anchored finished in a time of 37.83 s, a new world record.

Numerous Accolades

Best in the world

He has been voted "World Athlete of the Century" by the International Association of Athletics Federations and "Sportsman of the Century" by the International Olympic Committee. "Olympian of the Century" by Sports Illustrated and "Athlete of the Year" by Track & Field News in 1982, 1983, and 1984.

Life after games
After retiring from his athletics career, Lewis became an actor and has appeared in a number of films. In 2011 he attempted to run for a seat as a Democrat in the New Jersey Senate, but was removed from the ballot due to the state's residency requirement. Lewis owns a marketing and branding company named C.L.E.G., which markets and brands products and services including his own.

Despite being embroiled in controversy over failed drugs tests during US team trials for the 1988 Olympics and Character misconceptions, Lewis stunning career demands an enormous amount of respect. He won four gold medals and was undefeated for over a decade in his favored event, long jump, while he also managed to set world records over distances between 100m and 4x100m with the American relay team.